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Frans Hals (Dutch, circa 1582/83–1666). Man Holding a Medallion, circa 1614–15. Oil on canvas, 29 1/4 x 22 3/8 in. (74.3 x 56.7 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of the Executors of the Estate of Colonel Michael Friedsam, 32.821
Although the coat of arms in the upper left corner offers a clue to this sitter's lineage, his identity remains unknown. Extending his left hand through the simulated oval frame and into the viewer's space, the elegantly attired young man displays a painted miniature of a young woman, perhaps his betrothed or his wife. Before the advent of photography in the nineteenth century, portrait miniatures—both portable and intimate—permitted their owners an immediate access to the memory and appearance of loved ones. The fact that this young man's identity is forgotten seems particularly ironic, since both the miniature and the larger portrait were intended as remembrances.
Eastern Parkway/Brooklyn Museum